LOS ANGELES, CA (March 27, 2017) – The Los Angeles Athletic Club announced the 2017 John R. Wooden Award® Presented By Wendy’s® All American Team on a 30-minute show on ESPNU today (7 pm EDT). The Wooden Award All American Team™ is made up of ten student-athletes who were the top vote-getters in the quest to earn college basketball’s most prestigious honor. The ten-player team, alphabetically, consists of: Lonzo Ball (UCLA), Dillon Brooks (Oregon), Josh Hart (Villanova), Josh Jackson (Kansas), Justin Jackson (North Carolina), Luke Kennard (Duke), Frank Mason III (Kansas), Malik Monk (Kentucky), Caleb Swanigan (Purdue), and Nigel Williams-Goss (Gonzaga). The five players who are invited to Los Angeles for the Wooden Award™ presentation during the ESPN College Basketball Awards presented by Wendy’s® are Ball, Hart, Mason III, Swanigan, and Williams-Goss. 

Voting took place from March 13-20, 2017, allowing voters to take into consideration the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament. Fans were able to vote through the fan voting site, sponsored by Wendy’s®, at www.woodenawardvote.com.  As insisted upon by Coach Wooden at the Award’s creation 41 years ago, all players have been certified by their universities as meeting or exceeding the criteria of the John R. Wooden Award® presented by Wendy’s®.

The 41^st annual presentation of the John R. Wooden Award® to the men’s and women’s most outstanding college basketball player will be the anchor presentation of the ESPN College Basketball Awards Presented By Wendy’s® on ESPN2 on Friday, April 7, 2017. The men’s and women’s John R. Wooden Award All American Teams™ will be honored during the ceremony and the 2017 Wooden Award Legends of Coaching Trophy™ will be presented to Muffet McGraw, Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Notre Dame.

About the John R. Wooden Award

Created in 1976 by the Los Angeles Athletic Club, the John R. Wooden Award® program features the most prestigious individual honors in college basketball. The Wooden Award Trophy™ is bestowed annually upon the nation’s best male and female player, who have met the selection criteria as set forth by the Award’s creators. Previous winners include such notables as Larry Bird (‘79), Michael Jordan (‘84), Tim Duncan (‘97), Candace Parker (‘07 and ‘08), Kevin Durant (‘07), Maya Moore (‘09 and ’11), Trey Burke (’13), Doug McDermott (‘14), Frank Kaminsky (’15). Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield won the 2016 men’s Wooden Award™ presented by Wendy’s® and Breanna Stewart of Connecticut won the 2016 women’s Wooden Award™.

Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award® has contributed close to a million dollars to the general scholarship fund of the honoree’s University in the name of the All-American recipient. The Award has also enabled more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long basketball camps in the Award’s name. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award® partners with the Special Olympics Southern California each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament takes place at the Los Angeles Athletic Club the weekend of the John R. Wooden Award® presentation, and brings together Special Olympics athletes and the Wooden Award All-Americans™.

Fans can follow the candidates en route to the Wooden Award™ presentation and get the latest news by liking the Wooden Award Facebook page or following @WoodenAward on Twitter and Instagram. For more information on the John R. Wooden Award®, please contact Ernest Baskerville at (213) 630-5231 or via email at [email protected].

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2016-17 John R. Wooden Award® Presented By Wendy’s® Men’s All American Team